United States · United States Congress · 7 March 2017
This joint resolution nullifies the rule submitted by the Federal Communications Commission entitled "Protecting the Privacy of Customers of Broadband and Other Telecommunications Services." The rule published on December 2, 2016: (1) applies the customer privacy requirements of the Communications Act of 1934 to broadband Internet access service and other telecommunications services, (2) requires telecommunications carriers to inform customers about rights to opt in or opt out of the use or the sharing of their confidential information, (3) adopts data security and breach notification requirements, (4) prohibits broadband service offerings that are contingent on surrendering privacy rights, and (5) requires disclosures and affirmative consent when a broadband provider offers customers financial incentives in exchange for the provider's right to use a customer's confidential information.
United States · United States Congress · 7 March 2017
National Right-to-Work Act This bill amends the National Labor Relations Act and the Railway Labor Act to repeal those provisions that permit employers, pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement that is a union security agreement, to require employees to join a union as a condition of employment (including provisions permitting railroad carriers to require, pursuant to such an agreement, payroll deduction of union dues or fees as a condition of employment).
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 2017
Assuring Private Property Rights Over Vast Access to Land Act or the APPROVAL Act This bill amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to prohibit the Department of Energy and the Southwestern and Western Area Power Administrations from using the power of eminent domain to implement modernization of electricity transmission infrastructure, unless they have received explicit permission to do so by: (1) the state governor and the head of each applicable public utility commission or public service commission of the affected state, and (2) the head of the governing body of each Indian tribe whose land would be affected. An electricity transmission infrastructure project, to the greatest extent practicable, must be sited upon either an existing federal right-of-way or upon federal land managed by either: (1) the Bureau of Land Management, (2) the Forest Service, (3) the Bureau of Reclamation, or (4) the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 2017
Timber Revitalization and Economic Enhancement Act of 201 7 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to make permanent the reduced tax rate for corporations that have both net capital gains and timber gains.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 2017
Lymphedema Treatment Act This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to cover certain lymphedema compression treatment items as durable medical equipment under Medicare. (Lymphedema is a condition of localized fluid retention and tissue swelling that is caused when the lymphatic system is damaged or blocked.)
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2017
Removing Barriers to Colorectal Cancer Screening Act of 2017 This bill waives Medicare coinsurance requirements with respect to colorectal cancer screening tests, regardless of the code billed for a resulting diagnosis or procedure.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2017
Hunter and Farmer Protection Act of 2017 This bill amends the Migratory Bird Treaty Act to revise standards for determining what constitutes baiting for purposes of the prohibition on taking migratory game birds. A baited area, in the case of waterfowl, cranes, and coots, includes a standing, unharvested crop that has been manipulated through activities such as mowing, discing, or rolling, unless the activities are normal agricultural practices. An area is not considered to be a baited area if it: (1) has been treated with a normal agricultural practice, (2) has standing crops that have not been manipulated, or (3) has standing crops that have been or are flooded. The Department of Agriculture (USDA) must submit to the Department of the Interior a report on changes to normal agricultural practices across the range of crops grown by agricultural producers in each region of the United States in which USDA harvest practice recommendations are provided to agricultural producers.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2017
This bill prohibits certain assistance under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 from being made available for the West Bank and Gaza unless the Department of State certifies that the Palestinian Authority: (1) is taking steps to end acts of violence against Israeli citizens perpetrated by individuals under its jurisdictional control; and (2) has terminated payments for acts of terrorism against Israeli citizens to any individual who has been convicted and imprisoned for such acts, to any individual who died committing such acts, and to family members of such an individual.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2017
This joint resolution nullifies the rule finalized by the Department of Education on November 29, 2016, relating to accountability and state plans under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2017
Ozone Regulatory Delay and Extension of Assessment Length Act of 2017 or the ORDEAL Act of 2017 This bill amends the Clean Air Act to lengthen from 5 years to 10 years the intervals at which the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is required to review and revise air quality criteria and primary and secondary national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS). This bill eliminates the EPA's authority to review and revise criteria or promulgate new standards for ozone concentrations earlier or more frequently than required. The EPA must delay until 2025 the enforcement and implementation of the rule entitled, "National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Ozone." No earlier than 2025, the EPA must initiate a new rulemaking to promulgate NAAQS for ozone concentrations. The intervals at which an independent scientific review committee is required to review air quality criteria and NAAQS and recommend any new standards or revisions to existing criteria and standards are lengthened from 5 years to 10 years. The bill delays the review by an independent scientific review committee of NAAQS for ozone concentrations until 2025.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2017
Commonsense Legislative Exceptional Events Reforms Act of 2017 This bill amends the Clean Air Act to revise the criteria used by the Environmental Protection Agency in reviewing state air quality monitoring data influenced by exceptional events. Currently, an exceptional event affects air quality, is not reasonably controllable or preventable, and is caused by a natural event or by human activity that is unlikely to recur at a particular location. This bill allows an exceptional event to include a meteorological event involving high temperatures or lack of precipitation. Under current law, states may petition the EPA to exclude air quality monitoring data that are affected by an exceptional event in determining whether there were exceedances or violations of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. The bill requires the criteria used by the EPA in determining whether an exceptional event was demonstrated by a state to be specific in order to minimize the discretion of the EPA in approving or disapproving the demonstration. The EPA must make a determination within 90 days after the submission of a petition by a state of an exceptional event demonstration. The demonstration is approved if the EPA does not make a determination by that deadline. A determination must be based on a preponderance of the evidence and give substantial deference to the findings of the state exceptional event demonstration. An appeal process for reviewing a disapproval of a demonstration is established.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2017
Agency PAYGO for Greenhouse Gases Act This bill requires the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to include an offset in any proposed rule that limits greenhouse gas emissions and imposes increased costs on other agencies. The offset must be from funds available to the EPA and be for all projected increased costs imposed on other agencies. Agencies may not pass on the cost imposed by the rule on to any rate payer of the agencies.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2017
Honoring Investments in Recruiting and Employing American Military Veterans Act of 2017 or the HIRE Vets Act This bill directs the Department of Labor to establish a HIRE Vets Medallion Program to solicit voluntary information from employers for purposes of recognizing through a HIRE Vets Medallion Award verified efforts by these employers to: (1) recruit, employ, and retain veterans; and (2) provide community and charitable services supporting the veteran community. Labor shall annually: (1) solicit, verify, and review award applications from employers, (2) notify award recipients, and (3) issue awards at a time coinciding with Veterans Day. An employer who receives an award is not eligible for an award the following year. Labor shall establish two levels of awards for employers of 500 or more employees, to be designated the Gold HIRE Vets Medallion Award and the Platinum HIRE Vets Medallion Award. Criteria for such awards shall include the percentage of hired employees who are veterans, the percentage of veteran employees who are retained, the establishment of related veterans' assistance and training programs, the employment of dedicated human resources professionals for veterans, and income and tuition support for veterans. Labor shall establish similar awards to recognize achievements in supporting veterans by: (1) employers with 50 or fewer employees, and (2) employers with more than 50 but fewer than 500 employees. Labor shall establish the design of each award certificate. A recipient may publicly display the award and award certificate through the end of the calendar year in which it is awarded. The bill prohibits an employer from publicly displaying an award as a part of any advertisement or business activity in order to convey the false impression that the employer received such award for any other year. The bill establishes the HIRE Vets Medallion Award Fund. Labor may assess a reasonable application fee to carry out the award program and shall deposit such fees into the fund. The bill excludes from the definition of "employer" the federal government or any state government.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2017
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty Preservation Act of 2017 This bill states that it is the policy of the United States that: (1) Russian actions undertaken in violation of the the Treaty between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Elimination of their Intermediate-Range and Shorter-Range Missiles (INF treaty) constitute a material breach of the treaty, (2) the United States is legally entitled to suspend the INF treaty in whole or in part for so long as Russia continues to be in material breach, and (3) the United States should take certain actions to bring the Russian Federation back into compliance. The bill authorizes additional appropriations for: (1) development of active defenses to counter ground launched missile systems; (2) counterforce and countervailing capabilities; (3) missile system transfers to allied countries; and (4) research, development, and evaluation activities for a dual-capable road-mobile ground-launched cruise missile system. The Department of Defense (DOD) shall: (1) develop such a system with a range of between 500 to 5,500 kilometers; (2) report on the cost, schedule, and feasibility to modify the Tomahawk, Standard Missile-3, Standard Missile-6, Long-Range Stand Off Cruise Missile, and Army Tactical Missile System missiles for ground-launch with such range; and (3) report on the number and location of AEGIS Ashore sites with anti-air warfare capability necessary in Asia and Europe to defend U.S. forces and allies from Russian ground launched missile systems. The Director of National Intelligence, every 90 days for five years, shall determine whether Russia has flight tested, produced, or possesses a system that is inconsistent with the INF treaty and that has reached initial operational capability, is deployed, or is about to be deployed. No funds may be obligated or expended to extend the New START Treaty, permit Russian flights over the United States or U.S. allies pursuant to the Open Skies Treaty, or permit the approval of new or updated implementation decisions through the Open Skies Consultative Commission unless the President certifies that Russia has eliminated all missiles that are in violation of, or that may be inconsistent with, the INF treaty. The Department of State shall conduct a review of the RS-26 Ballistic Missile system. Upon a determination that Russia has flight-tested, produced, or is in possession of certain missiles, the President shall: (1) suspend the application of the INF treaty with respect to the United States, and (2) notify the other state parties to the INF treaty that Russia is in material breach of the INF treaty and of the U.S. decision to suspend the INF treaty.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2017
Advancing Care for Exceptional Kids Act of 2017 or the ACE Kids Act of 2017 This bill allows a state Medicaid program or child health plan to provide coordinated care through enhanced pediatric health homes (EPHHs) for children who have complex medical conditions. Pursuant to an agreement with a state, an EPHH offers: (1) comprehensive pediatric care management, (2) care coordination and health promotion, (3) comprehensive transitional care, (4) patient and family support, (5) referrals to community and social support services, (6) the use of health information technology to link services, and (7) coordination of access to the full range of pediatric specialty and subspecialty medical services. In general, an EPHH must enroll any eligible child who requests enrollment. A child who opts to enroll shall have the option to disenroll from the EPHH and instead receive covered services under the state Medicaid program or the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Each state shall develop a methodology for payment to EPHHs under the state plan. The bill establishes requirements related to data collection and quality assurance. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) shall issue guidance to states on best practices for ensuring that children with complex medical conditions receive prompt care from out-of-state providers when medically necessary. The Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission must report to Congress and the CMS on specified information related to children with complex medical conditions.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2017
Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2017 This bill amends the United States-Hong Kong Policy Act of 1992 to direct the Department of State to report to Congress (within 90 days and annually thereafter through 2023) on conditions in Hong Kong that are of U.S. interest. Such report shall include matters in which Hong Kong is given separate treatment under U.S. laws from that accorded to China. The State Department shall certify to Congress annually whether Hong Kong is sufficiently autonomous to justify separate treatment different from that accorded to China in any new laws, agreements, treaties, or arrangements entered into between the United States and Hong Kong. The President shall identify persons responsible for: (1) the surveillance, abduction, detention, or forced confessions of certain booksellers and journalists in Hong Kong; and (2) other actions suppressing basic freedoms. The bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to deny U.S. entry to identified individuals and revoke visas or other entry documentation. Entry, work, or study visa applicants who resided in Hong Kong in 2014 shall not be denied visas on the basis of the applicant's arrest or detention or other adverse government action taken as a result of participation in the nonviolent protest activities related to Hong Kong's electoral process. The President shall freeze the U.S.-based assets of identified individuals.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2017
Improving Transparency and Accuracy in Medicare Part D Spending Act This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to prohibit Medicare Prescription Drug Plan sponsors from retroactively reducing payment on clean claims submitted by pharmacies. (A "clean claim" is a Medicare claim that is free of defects such as incomplete documentation.)
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2017
ALS Disability Insurance Access Act of 2017 This bill amends title II (Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to eliminate the five-month waiting period for disability insurance benefits for individuals with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (a progressive neurodegenerative disease, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord). Under current law, individuals must wait five months after becoming disabled before their disability insurance benefit payments can begin.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2017
Calls upon: (1) the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, other elements of the Department of Defense and the federal government, and all foreign governments to intensify efforts to investigate, recover, identify and account for all missing and unaccounted-for U.S. personnel; and (2) all foreign governments with information on missing U.S. personnel, or with missing U.S. personnel within their territories, to cooperate fully with the U.S. government to provide the fullest possible accounting for all missing U.S. personnel.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2017
Synthetics Trafficking and Overdose Prevention Act of 2017 or the STOP Act of 2017 This bill amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to make the Postmaster General the consignee (i.e., the entity financially responsible for the receipt of a shipment) for merchandise, excluding documents, imported through the mail into the United States. The Postmaster General must designate licensed customs brokers to file required documents or information for such shipments. The bill amends the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 to impose a customs user fee on postal shipments or any other item valued at $2,000 or less arriving at an international mail facility. The bill amends the Trade Act of 2002 to direct the Department of the Treasury to require the Postmaster General to provide for the advanced electronic transmission to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection of certain information for all postal shipments by the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), including postal shipments it receives from foreign postal operators. The Postmaster General: shall be liable for civil penalties for postal shipment violations committed by a foreign postal operator or the USPS; may be directly or indirectly responsible for discrepancies resulting from omissions made or false information provided by a foreign postal operator or the USPS; and shall ensure that all costs and penalties associated with complying with this bill are recouped from foreign shippers, foreign postal operators, or U.S. ultimate consignees.
United States · United States Congress · 13 February 2017
Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment Act or the RAISE Act This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to eliminate the diversity immigrant visa category. The fiscal year limit for refugee admissions is set at 50,000. The President shall annually enumerate the previous year's number of asylees. The bill defines: (1) "immediate relative" as the under-21 year old child or spouse of a U.S. citizen, and (2) "family-sponsored immigrant" as the under-21 year old child or spouse of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence. The worldwide fiscal year level for family-sponsored immigrants is reduced. The bill establishes a nonimmigrant alien W-visa for the parent of an adult (at least 21 years old) U.S. citizen.
United States · United States Congress · 13 February 2017
Master Sergeant Roddie Edmonds Congressional Gold Medal Act This bill directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange for the posthumous award of a Congressional Gold Medal to Roddie Edmonds in recognition of his achievements and heroic actions during World War II.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2017
State Veterans Home Adult Day Health Care Improvement Act of 2017 This bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to enter into an agreement or a contract with each state home to pay for medical supervision model adult day health care for a veteran for whom the home is not receiving VA nursing home care payments. The veteran must need such care either specifically for a service-connected disability, or, if not specifically for one, the veteran must have a service-connected disability rated 70% or more. Payment under each agreement or contract between the VA and a state home must equal 65% of the payment that the VA would otherwise pay to the state home if the veteran were receiving nursing home care. "Medical supervision model adult day health care" means adult day health care that includes the coordination of physician services, dental services, the administration of drugs, and such other requirements as the VA may determine.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2017
Military Widow's Tax Elimination Act of 2017 This bill repeals certain provisions which require the offset of amounts paid in dependency and indemnity compensation from Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) annuities for the surviving spouses of former military personnel who are entitled to military retired pay or who would be entitled to such pay, except for being under 60 years of age. The Department of Defense is prohibited from recouping certain amounts previously paid to SBP recipients in the form of a retired pay refund. The bill requires (current law authorizes) the Secretary of the military department concerned to pay an annuity to a member's dependent children when there is no eligible surviving spouse. The Secretary concerned shall restore annuity eligibility to a surviving spouse who earlier agreed to transfer such eligibility to the surviving child or children of a member.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2017
Fracturing Regulations are Effective in State Hands Act This bill gives states the sole authority to promulgate or enforce any regulation, guidance, or permit requirement regarding hydraulic fracturing on or under any land within their boundaries. Hydraulic fracturing or fracking is a process to extract underground resources such as oil or gas from a geologic formation by injecting water, a propping agent (e.g., sand), and chemical additives into a well under enough pressure to fracture the geological formation. Hydraulic fracturing on federal land must comply with the law of the state in which the land is located.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2017
This bill declares that United Nations Security Council Resolution 2310 (September 23, 2016) does not obligate the United States to refrain from actions that would run counter to the object and purpose of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. No U.S. funds may be made available to the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization, except for the organization's international monitoring system.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2017
Public Buildings Renewal Act of 2017 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit the tax-exempt financing of certain government-owned buildings by expanding the definition of "exempt facility bond" to include bonds used for qualified government buildings. A qualified government building is a government-owned building or facility that consists of one or more of the following: an elementary or secondary school; a facility of a state college or university used for educational purposes; a public library; a court; a hospital, health care, laboratory, or research facility; a public safety facility; or an office for government employees. The bill excludes buildings or facilities that include specified recreational equipment or are used for the primary purpose of providing retail food and beverage services, recreation, or entertainment. The bill establishes: (1) a $5 billion limit on the amount of tax-exempt financing which may be provided for government buildings, and (2) procedures for allocating and applying for the financing. The bill exempts the bonds for government buildings from the volume cap on private activity bonds.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2017
Vietnam Helicopter Crew Monument Act This bill directs the Department of the Army to place in Arlington National Cemetery a monument honoring helicopter pilots and crew members who were killed while serving on active duty in the Armed Forces during the Vietnam era, subject to an agreement with the Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association under which the association shall pay all site preparation, construction, installation, and maintenance costs for the memorial. The Army shall remove the Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association Memorial Tree and place the monument where the tree stood.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2017
Children's Consignment Event Recognition Act of 2017 This bill amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to exclude from the meaning of "employee" subject to minimum wage and maximum hours requirements any individuals who volunteer their services at a children's consignment event with or without the assistance of a facilitator and meet certain other conditions. This bill defines "children's consignment event" to mean a sale or other event in which: (1) at least 90% of the aggregate fair market value of items offered for sale are children's or maternity clothing, and resale items are offered for sale on consignment; and (2) the event is held open to the public in a single location for the sale of goods for 8 or fewer sale days within any 30-day period.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2017
Traditional Cigar Manufacturing and Small Business Jobs Preservation Act of 2017 This bill amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to exempt traditional large and premium cigars from regulation by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and from user fees assessed on tobacco products by the FDA.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2017
Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act of 2017 This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to: (1) eliminate the per country numerical limitation for employment-based immigrants, and (2) increase the per country numerical limitation for family based immigrants from 7% to 15% of the total number of family-sponsored visas. The Chinese Student Protection Act of 1992 is amended to eliminate the provision requiring the reduction of annual Chinese immigrant visas to offset status adjustments under such Act. The bill establishes the following transition period for employment-based second and third preference (EB-2 and EB-3) immigrant visas: for FY2017, 15% of such visas allotted to natives of countries other than the two countries with the largest aggregate numbers of natives obtaining such visas in FY2011; for FY2018, 10% of such visas allotted in each category to natives of countries other than the two with the largest aggregate numbers of natives obtaining such visas in FY2012; and for FY2019, 10% of such visas allotted in each category to natives of countries other than the two with the largest aggregate numbers of natives obtaining such visas in FY2015. The bill sets forth the following per country distribution rules: (1) for transition period visas, not more than 25% of the total number of EB-2 and EB-3 visas for natives of a single country; and (2) for non-transition period visas, not more than 85% of EB-2 and EB-3 visas for natives of a single country. Amendments made by this bill shall take place as if enacted on September 30, 2016, and shall apply beginning in FY2017.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2017
This joint resolution nullifies the rule finalized by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on November 22, 2016, relating to prepaid accounts under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act and the Truth in Lending Act. The rule establishes various consumer protections with respect to prepaid accounts.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2017
Expresses concern about widespread shortages of essential medicines and basic food products faced by the people of Venezuela. Urges President Maduro to permit the delivery of humanitarian assistance. Calls on the government of Venezuela to: release all political prisoners and to respect internationally recognized human rights; ensure the neutrality and professionalism of all security forces and to respect the Venezuelan people's rights to freedom of expression and assembly; and halt its efforts to undermine the principle of separation of powers, its circumvention of the democratically elected legislature, and its subjugation of judicial independence. Expresses support for: (1) meaningful efforts toward a dialogue that leads to respect for Venezuela's constitutional mechanisms and resolves the country's political, economic, social, and humanitarian crisis; and (2) Organization of American States (OAS) Secretary General Almagro's invocation of Article 20 of the Inter-American Democratic Charter. Urges the OAS Permanent Council to undertake a collective assessment of the constitutional and democratic order in Venezuela. Stresses the urgency of strengthening the rule of law and increasing efforts to combat impunity and public corruption in Venezuela. Urges the President of the United States to provide full support for OAS efforts in favor of constitutional and democratic solutions to the political impasse and to instruct federal agencies to hold officials of the Venezuelan government accountable for violations of U.S. law and abuses of internationally recognized human rights.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2017
Investing in Student Success Act of 2017 This bill authorizes an individual (i.e., a student) and another person (i.e., an investor) to enter an income-share agreement (ISA) in which the student agrees to pay a percentage of future income, for a specified period of time, in exchange for funds to pay for postsecondary education, workforce development, or other purposes. An ISA that complies with specified terms and conditions and meets certain disclosure requirements is a valid, binding, and enforceable contract and is not subject to state laws that limit interest rates or regulate assignments of future income. The bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to include an ISA as a qualified education loan (a qualified education loan is not dischargeable in bankruptcy), but it prohibits a tax deduction for interest paid on an ISA (interest paid on a qualified education loan is tax deductible). Payments to a student under an ISA are not includible as: (1) gross income for tax purposes, or (2) income or assets for federal financial aid eligibility purposes under the Higher Education Act of 1965. The bill amends the Investment Company Act of 1940 to exclude as an investment company any person whose business substantially consists of making ISAs.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2017
Common Sense Nutrition Disclosure Act of 2017 This bill amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to revise the nutritional information that restaurants and retail food establishments must disclose. The nutrient content disclosure statement on the menu or menu board must include: (1) the number of calories contained in the whole menu item; (2) the number of servings and number of calories per serving; or (3) the number of calories per common unit of the item, such as for a multi-serving item that is typically divided before presentation to the consumer. Nutritional information may be provided solely by a remote-access menu (e.g., an Internet menu) for food establishments where the majority of orders are placed by customers who are off-premises. Establishments with self-serve food may comply with the requirements for restaurants or place signs with nutritional information adjacent to each food item. An establishment's nutrient content disclosures may vary from actual nutrient content if the disclosures comply with current standards for reasonable basis. Establishments with standard menu items that come in different flavors, varieties, or combinations, that are listed as a single menu item can determine and disclose nutritional information using specified methods or methods allowed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Regulations pursuant to this bill or the clause amended by this bill cannot take effect earlier than two years after final regulations are promulgated. The FDA may not exempt states from nutrition labeling requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2017
Protecting Seniors' Access to Medicare Act of 2017 This bill amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) to terminate the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB). Under PPACA, the IPAB is tasked with developing proposals to reduce the per capita rate of growth in Medicare spending.
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2017
This joint resolution nullifies the "Disclosure of Payments by Resource Extraction Issuers" rule finalized by the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 27, 2016. (The rule, mandated under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, requires resource extraction issuers to disclose payments made to governments for the commercial development of oil, natural gas, or minerals.)
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2017
Working to Integrate Networks Guaranteeing Member Access Now Act or the WINGMAN Act This bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to provide each veteran who submits a claim for VA benefits with an opportunity to permit a covered congressional employee in the office of the veteran's Member of Congress to have read-only access to all of the veteran's records in the Veterans Benefits Administration databases. A Member may designate up to two such covered congressional employees. A covered congressional employee may not be recognized as an agent or attorney with respect to veterans' benefit claims. Funds under this bill may not be used to design or administer any training for covered congressional employees. The bill makes funds available for FY2018 through FY2021 for such congressional employee access program.
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2017
Protect Funding for Women's Health Care Act This bill prohibits federal funding of Planned Parenthood Federation of America or its affiliates, subsidiaries, successors, or clinics.
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2017
This joint resolution nullifies the “Implementation of the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007 ” rule finalized by the Social Security Administration on December 19, 2016. The rule implements a plan to provide to the National Instant Criminal History Background Check System the name of an individual who meets certain criteria, including that benefit payments are made through a representative payee because the individual is determined to be mentally incapable of managing them. (Current law prohibits firearm sale or transfer to and purchase or possession by a person who has been adjudicated as a mental defective.)
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2017
This joint resolution nullifies a Department of Health and Human Services rule regarding subrecipients of family planning grants. (Under the rule, grant recipients may prohibit an entity from receiving a subaward only for reasons related to the entity's ability to provide family planning services.)
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2017
This joint resolution nullifies the Stream Protection Rule finalized by the Department of the Interior on December 20, 2016. The rule addresses the impacts of surface coal mining operations on surface water, groundwater, and the productivity of mining operation sites.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2017
Trickett Wendler Right to Try Act of 2017 This bill requires the federal government to allow unrestricted manufacturing, distribution, prescribing, and dispensing of experimental drugs, biological products, and medical devices that are: (1) intended to treat a patient who has been diagnosed with a terminal illness, and (2) authorized by state law. The federal government must allow unrestricted possession and use of such treatments by patients certified by a physician as having exhausted all other treatment options. A manufacturer, distributor, prescriber, dispenser, possessor, or user of such a treatment has no liability regarding the treatment. The outcome of manufacture, distribution, prescribing, dispensing, possession, or use of such a treatment may not be used by a federal agency to adversely impact review or approval of the treatment. The treatment must: (1) have successfully completed a phase 1 (initial, small scale) clinical trial; (2) remain under investigation in a clinical trial approved by the Food and Drug Administration; and (3) not be approved, licensed, or cleared for sale under the Federal Food, Drug, or Cosmetic Act or the Public Health Service Act.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2017
Recognizing the Protection of Motorsports Act of 2017 or the RPM Act of 2017 This bill amends the Clean Air Act to allow the modification of a vehicle's air emission controls if the vehicle is used solely for competition.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2017
Senior$afe Act of 2017 This bill extends immunity from liability to certain individuals who, in good faith and with reasonable care, disclose the suspected exploitation of a senior citizen to a regulatory or law-enforcement agency. Specifically, this immunity shall apply to certain credit-union, depository-institution, investment-adviser, broker-dealer, insurance-company, and insurance-agency employees who have received specified training related to identifying and reporting the suspected exploitation of a senior citizen. Similarly, the employing financial institution shall not be liable with respect to disclosures made by such employees.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2017
Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act This bill amends the federal criminal code to require any health care practitioner who is present when a child is born alive following an abortion or attempted abortion to: (1) exercise the same degree of care as reasonably provided to any other child born alive at the same gestational age, and (2) ensure that such child is immediately admitted to a hospital. The term "born alive" means the complete expulsion or extraction from his or her mother, at any stage of development, who after such expulsion or extraction breathes or has a beating heart, pulsation of the umbilical cord, or definite movement of voluntary muscles, regardless of whether the umbilical cord has been cut. Also, a health care practitioner or other employee who has knowledge of a failure to comply with these requirements must immediately report such failure to an appropriate law enforcement agency. An individual who violates the provisions of this bill is subject to a criminal fine, up to five years in prison, or both. An individual who commits an overt act that kills a child born alive is subject to criminal prosecution for murder. The bill bars the criminal prosecution of a mother of a child born alive for conspiracy to violate these provisions, for being an accessory after the fact, or for concealment of felony. A woman who undergoes an abortion or attempted abortion may file a civil action for damages against an individual who violates this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2017
Safeguard Aquaculture Farmers Act This bill provides the force and effect of law for certain regulations that allow for the taking of double-crested cormorants (birds) that eat fish at aquaculture facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2017
Death Tax Repeal Act of 201 7 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) repeal the estate and generation-skipping transfer taxes, and (2) make permanent the maximum 35% gift tax rate and the lifetime gift tax exemption. The bill also provides for an inflation adjustment to such exemption amount.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2017
Combating European Anti-Semitism Act This bill expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) it is in the U.S. national interest to combat anti-Semitism at home and abroad; (2) there is a need to ensure the security of European Jewish communities, including synagogues, schools, and cemeteries; and (3) the United States should continue to emphasize the importance of combating anti-Semitism in multilateral bodies. The International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 is amended to require the Department of State's Annual Report on International Religious Freedom to include, for each European country in which threats or attacks against Jewish persons, schools, and religious institutions are particularly significant, a description of: the security challenges and needs of European Jewish communities and European law enforcement agencies; U.S. efforts to partner with European law enforcement agencies and civil society groups to combat anti-Semitic incidents; educational programming and public awareness initiatives that impart values of pluralism and tolerance, showcase the positive contributions of Jews, and pay special attention to population segments that exhibit a high degree of anti-Semitic animus; and efforts by European governments to adopt and apply a working definition of anti-Semitism.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2017
Declares that Congress should not impose any new performance fee, tax, royalty, or other charge: (1) relating to the public performance of sound recordings on a local radio station for broadcasting sound recordings over the air, or (2) on any business for the public performance of sound recordings on a local radio station broadcast over the air.
![Official portrait of Sen. Cotton, Tom [R-AR]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/c001095_200.jpg)